Writing Proposals: The Freelancer’s Guide to Landing Your Dream Gig

Writing proposals is something of an art form: you need to lay out the concept for a project, with all the amazing benefits that will make a client want to write you a check immediately, as well as the negatives, like the big price tag. Proposals are your gateway to turning those dreams into reality. But a generic proposal won’t get you there.

This step-by-step guide will let you know how to write a proposal for a project that stands out, showcases your expertise, and convinces clients you’re the perfect fit. We’ll explore understanding your freelancer skills, impressing potential clients, structuring winning proposals, and using project proposal templates.

Deciding the Formality of Your Proposal

Not every project requires a proposal. In fact, many freelancers may never write a formal proposal in their lives. A quick summary or query letter may be more than enough to land a project. But if your goal is to land bigger projects, it’s important to master the skill of writing proposals—it’s rare that you can describe a big-budget project in a hundred words or less. Rather, when you’ve got multiple moving parts, you need to be able to describe what they are, why the client needs each one, and the price tag.

Curious how to price your services competitively? Check out this Envato Tuts+ tutorial to master the art of project pricing.

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  How to Charge Premium Prices and Write Winning Proposals

  

  Joyce Akiko

  14 May 2023

If you don’t need a full proposal to win over your clients, it’s usually not worth the effort to write one up. However, if you need to practice your proposal writing skills, it’s worth putting together a few more in-depth pitches than you usually would offer your clients. I wouldn’t suggest doing so for a one-off article or logo, but for something a little bigger, consider taking the opportunity to practice your skills.

Streamlining the Process

There are certain parts of a proposal that will be the same, whether you’re writing the proposal for the biggest client you’ve ever landed or for a smaller project. So why rewrite those parts every time you need to put together a new proposal?

You can create a template for your business, allowing you to make use of the work you’ve already done. Daniel Waldman, of Evolve Communications, doesn’t use a formal template, but he does get the benefit of reusing his work:

Since starting my business, I’ve written probably hundreds of proposals. Plus, in previous jobs, I had written many, many proposals. Over time, I’ve developed certain stock language for services and other items that get used again and again. It’s not a template per se, but more like a handful of standard phrases that I customize for each proposal.

It’s not necessary to create a complete template that you follow to the letter when writing a new proposal, but make sure that you don’t need to reinvent the wheel every time you start on a new proposal. You can get the benefit of reusing your work if you just keep a copy of another proposal open when starting another, so that you can cut, paste, and adapt language.

There’s an added bonus that goes along with following a standard template or format for each proposal you write. It’s surprisingly easy to forget about a section that you usually include when you’re in a rush to get a bid out the door. By following a standard list of sections to include in your proposal, you’ll make it a lot harder to miss anything.

There are no sections that absolutely need to be in every proposal (except, perhaps, price), because of the differences between projects. But you can build a template for the types of projects you typically take on.

Understanding Your Client

The secret to creating an excellent proposal—as defined by resulting in you receiving payment—is to understand exactly what your client is looking for. As Waldman says:

The best proposals are the ones that win! What that means is that the best proposals are the ones that a) showcase your skills b) showcase your business’ personality and c) showcase your knowledge of the client. Hit all three of these, and you’re as good as hired.

Do some serious research into any client that you’re writing a proposal for. It’s not uncommon for a freelancer to have a meeting with a prospective client before creating a proposal, but you may want to go a step beyond that. Doing some research into the client’s competition, industry, and other specific concerns can help you address them in your proposal.

Your clients are generally coming to you with specific problems that they need fixed. At the most basic level, a proposal is a suggestion for how to fix a problem. But that doesn’t mean that you should just stick to the problem the client tells you about. Doing that extra research will tell you if there’s another step that will really benefit a client and let you stand out from your competition.

Proposing One Option

It’s almost always better to offer one specific solution to your clients, perhaps with a few options that they can choose between. Following this approach means that you won’t overwhelm your prospective clients with too much to choose from. “Try not to offer ‘Chinese menu’ pricing,” as Waldman describes it. “In my experience, when faced with too many options, clients will choose none of the above. However, there are some clients who only want this.”

You can always offer a client more options later on, but it’s harder to take a choice off the table. If you can keep your proposals simple, your prospects are more likely to read the entire document. You also want to make it as easy to understand as possible. Don’t use fancy words or jargon that the reader might not be familiar with.

Always err on the side of simple language, even if you’re a writer and you want to show off. It’s important to be as clear as possible about exactly what you’re offering to do for the client in particular. A misunderstanding can force you to eat a cost, as Waldman has found out:

Be clear about what you’re going to be doing. I’ve been caught up by vague language many times in the past, and ended up being required to perform services I wasn’t expecting to do (nor was I getting paid to do them).

Similarly, you want to make your pricing easy to understand. Clients often will flip through a proposal, looking for the bottom line, before reading the rest of the document. Offer a clear explanation of the price, with the final total in bold somewhere near the front of your proposal. If clients can’t find the price, they’re not going to bother following up on the proposal, even if it’s in there somewhere.

Do whatever it takes to make sure that your prospective clients fully understand your proposals. Waldman suggests:

Depending on your line of business and how complicated your prospective client’s process is, the goal might be to have a meeting to walk through the proposal. I find that this is an important step, as there might be questions that arise. Plus, a face-to-face conversation always helps to solidify your relationship with the prospective client.

Editing as Many Times as You Can—And Then Once More

Even one little typo can throw off a prospective client and make them less interested in working with you. Proofread your proposals as many times as possible before you send them out. We’ve all worked on a proposal or a project until the wee hours of the morning, sent out a copy as soon as we’ve finished, and then found numerous errors the next day. That’s just bad for business.

It may mean waking someone up, but it’s always a good idea to have someone else proofread your proposals. Our brains can play tricks on us, making it harder to spot typos, especially when we’ve read a given document several times.

A person coming to the proposal fresh, though, will have an easier time catching errors, even if they’re not a professional proofreader. If you can have a pro take a look at your proposals, so much the better—trading some work may make for the best proposals you’ve ever sent out.

Polishing Your Proposal Skills

You can always get better at writing a proposal. There’s definitely a learning curve that you need to keep moving along as your freelance business grows.

Make sure to update your templates or stock phrases as your work evolves. Waldman points out:

I used the same company bio for about 2 years, until an associate pointed out to me that the focus of my business had changed. It was an obvious thing that needed updating, but for some reason, I had never really considered updating that section.

It’s also worthwhile to test different approaches in your proposals. It’s hard to gather enough data to see trends when you’re just sending out proposals as they’re requested, but it’s worth collecting what you can and analyzing it.

Level Up: Use a Project Proposal Template

If you’re struggling to craft proposals that turn heads, Envato offers a secret weapon: pre-designed project proposal templates. These customizable templates go beyond basic layouts. They provide a framework to showcase your skills, highlight relevant experience, and present a clear project timeline.  

With Envato, you can ditch the proposal writer’s block and focus on what matters—tailoring the content to each client. The professional design instantly elevates your offer, making a strong first impression that helps you land the gig. 

Let’s go over these five top proposal templates that can help you showcase your offer to future clients:

1. Brand Minimalism Proposal Template (INDD)

This project proposal template allows you to simply add your logo, images, brand colors, and typography. All the design heavy lifting has been done for you.

Features:

2. Project Proposal Template (INDD)

This clean template provides a professional foundation to showcase your project goals and strategies. Impress your potential clients with a clear and well-structured proposal that showcases your freelancer skills.

3. Business Proposal Template 

This highly customizable template caters to companies, organizations, agencies, and institutions across all sectors. 

Features: 

• 16 unique pages: Choose from pre-designed pages or customize them to fit your content.
• Master pages: Ensure consistent branding throughout your proposal with master pages.
• InDesign compatibility: Works seamlessly with InDesign CS4, CS5, CS5.5, CS6 & CC.
• Easy editing: Quickly replace text, images, and colors to match your brand identity.

4. Pink Landscape Proposal Template (AI, EPS, PSD)

This freelancer-friendly template offers a comprehensive 20-page layout. Designed with high-resolution (300 DPI) and print-ready CMYK colors for a polished look, the template boasts well-organized layers for easy customization.

5. Green Landscape Proposal Template (AI, EPS, PSD)

This 20-page beauty boasts a clean, modern design perfect for showcasing your green initiatives. Crafted with editable PSD, AI, and EPS formats for maximum flexibility, the template features crisp 300 DPI resolution and print-ready CMYK colors for a professional touch.  

How to Use a Project Proposal Template

Project proposal templates like the ones we just presented, offer a fantastic starting point, but to truly shine, you need to personalize them strategically with your own freelancer skills. To use a template to craft an impactful proposal, you should:

1. Understand the template: Start by deconstructing the template’s sections. Identify areas for client information, project description, your proposed solution, and deliverables.
2. Tailor the content: Don’t just fill in the blanks. Replace generic text with details specific to the client’s project and your unique approach. Address their pain points and demonstrate how your freelancer skills solve their problems.
3. Showcase expertise: Use the template’s structure to highlight relevant experience. Include case studies or past projects that mirror the client’s needs. Quantify your achievements to showcase your value.
4. Visual appeal:  Many templates offer design elements like charts and graphs. Use these strategically to present your timeline, budget, or project phases in a clear and engaging way.
5. Proofread and revise: Treat the final proposal as a polished document. Proofread meticulously for any typos or grammatical errors. Ensure clarity, conciseness, and a professional tone.

Wrapping Up

Ready to follow these steps and inject your unique voice and expertise? You’ll transform proposal writing from a hurdle to a strategic advantage.

Also, if you’re still curious and want to continue exploring proposal templates, head over to Envato and get creative with all the high-quality assets you’ll find there. 

Remember, a winning proposal isn’t just about you; it’s about demonstrating how your freelancer skills become the bridge between the client’s needs and their goals. So, put these tips into action, tailor your approach for each project, and watch those dream gigs become your reality.